The Foot(ball)--in-Mouth Awards

It was the Year of Broadcasting Dangerously for CBS commentator Terry Bradshaw, who was skulled by a boom in the studio at the start of the season and later went on the offensive, striking colleague Greg Gumbel in the eye during a high-five attempt.

Bradshaw wasn’t the only talking football head to bring us laughs.

As Super Bowl XXV is about to kick off, let’s hit the rewind button and re-live some of the lowlights, absurdities and unintentionally funny moments of the pigskin broadcasting season.

Who Am I? Award: ESPN’s Dan Patrick opened one segment of “SportsCenter” by saying, “I’m Bob Ley,” much to the surprise of co- anchor Bob Ley.

X-Rated Award: When “NFL Live” host Bob Costas couldn’t remember where a Seattle-Denver game was being played, commentator Will McDonough wise-cracked on the air: “He’s boosting the s-- out of Juice’s (O.J. Simpson’s) confidence level.” McDonough later explained he made the off-color remark only because he thought the segment was being taped.

He’s No Bob Ley, Though: NBC’s Paul Maguire, bragging about his work this season, declared, “I was Madden before Madden.”

Will McDonough Was Unavailable for the Narration: CBS reported that Jets coach Bruce Coslet was fined by the NFL for making an obscene gesture-and then showed it on the “NFL Today” show.

Worst Promo: Cleveland city officials demanded an apology after a remark by actor Jerry Van Dyke during a break in a Cleveland-Denver game on ABC. Van Dyke, who plays an assistant coach on the ABC show “Coach,” quipped that even if the the Browns won they’d still “lose because they have to go back to Cleveland.” Worst “Exclusives”: ESPN said the Raiders would move to Oakland (they didn’t), Gumbel reported that the Colts would fire coach Ron Meyer (they didn’t), and NBC’s McDonough said that reporter Lisa Olson’s charges of locker-room harassment against the New England Patriots were Rexaggerated” (an investigation revealed they weren’t, and McDonough later apologized).

Agonizing Appraisal Award: Asked who comprised the top NFL broadcasting team, NBC’s Don Criqui said: “In all honesty, nobody’s doing a better job than Bob Trumpy and myself.”

Voyeur of the Year: As Texas A&M; coaches on the sideline decided what play to call for a crucial 2-point conversion attempt in the waning moments against Texas, CBS’ shotgun microphones (and a national audience) listened, too. The ensuing run failed for the Aggies, who lost, 28-27. Some viewers questioned whether Longhorn coaches stationed in the press box had heard the strategy on television as well.

Nothing Personal, It’s Ratings I Virginia quarterback Shawn Moore, then considered a Heisman Trophy candidate, was invited to appear on NBC’s “Today Show.” But when his team lost to Georgia Tech a couple of days before his scheduled interview, the network called him and said never mind. Two other Heisman candidates were invited.

Spuds McKenzie Just Missed Making the List: A Sporting News poll on the 100 most powerful figures in sports rated CBS chairman Laurence Tisch No. 1, NBC president Dick Ebersol No. 2, and USA Today television columnist Rudy Martzke No. 77.

“And the Toyota’s at the 20! The 10! Touchdown!I”: When NBC switched back to the studio for an “NFL Live” update during a Bengals-Oilers game, viewers heard the audio of a car commercial, instead of Dick Enberg’s voice.

Made from Sour Grapes: ABC’s Brent Musburger, the former “NFL Today” host who was fired by CBS, ordered 10 bottles of champagne for the patrons of a San Francisco bar after the fourth and last game of the World Series ended. Cynics said he was celebrating the fact that the shortened series had cost his old boss millions of dollars in revenue.

And NBC’s Sponsors Couldn’t Have Agreed More: With the Oilers ahead of Kansas City by 17 points in the fourth quarter, Houston quarterback Warren Moon elected to sit out the rest of the game, though he was within a few yards of breaking the NFL single-game passing record. NBC’s Criqui and Trumpy criticized Moon, saying records were made to be broken.

At Least He Doesn’t Live in Cleveland: Asked by colleague Enberg what he’d like for Christmas, NBC’s unmelodious Bill Walsh said: “A new voice.”

It’s Great to Be Here at the World Series: A surprise guest on Monday Night Football was Vice President Dan Quayle. Well, maybe not such a surprise. He visited on election eve.

Steve Harvey writes The Times’ Bottom 10 column.